The second novel in the unforgettable, long lost series by Ralph Dennis is finally back in print… after being coveted for years by collectors of the very best in hardboiled fiction.

Jim Hardman was a mediocre Atlanta cop until he was wrongly accused of corruption and thrown off the force. Now he works as an unlicensed PI, trouble-shooter and bodyguard…often partnered with his drinking buddy Hump Evans, a black, ex-NFL player who supports his playboy lifestyle by working as hired muscle.

Five kids rip off a gambling party attended by Hump Evans and some of Atlanta’s criminal and political elite. Hardman is hired to recover the loot and find the kids before they are caught and butchered by a hitman from Charleston with a very sharp knife.

This new edition includes an introduction by Joe R. Lansdale, the New York Times bestselling author of the Hap & Leonard crime novels.

Atlanta Deathwatch

The first novel in the unforgettable, long lost series by Ralph Dennis is finally back in print… after being coveted for years by collectors of the very best in hardboiled fiction. Includes an Introduction by Joe R. Lansdale.

Reviews For The Charleston Knife is Back in Town

His prose was muscular, swift and highly readable. Like Chandler and Hammett before him, Dennis was trying to do something different with what was thought of as throwaway literature.

Joe R. Lansdale, from his introduction

The Charleston Knife is Back in Town5.0

Expert writing, plus good plotting and an unusual degree of sensitivity. Ralph Dennis has mastered the genre and supplied top entertainment.

New York Times

The Charleston Knife is Back in Town5.0

Among the best series books around. The dialogue is marvelously realistic.

Philadelphia Daily News

The Charleston Knife is Back in Town5.0

The Hardman books are by far the best of the men’s action-adventure series.

Mother Jones Magazine

The Charleston Knife is Back in Town5.0

Ralph Dennis is an underappreciated master. His Hardman series is one of the finest in the P.I. genre.

Robert Randisi, founder of the Private Eye Writers of America

The Charleston Knife is Back in Town5.0

The novel is a smooth and calculating read as Hardman and Hump navigate whore houses, strip clubs and dives to track down the robbers before the hired slasher. This series, and its second installment, showcases this Atlanta author's penchant for the crime noir. This is a mandatory read.